Families of E. coli victims sue fair

Families of two children who got sick in an October E. coli outbreak linked to the Cleveland County Fair filed a lawsuit against the fair this week.

Diane Turbyfill / Halifax Media Group

Families of two children who got sick in an October E. coli outbreak linked to the Cleveland County Fair filed a lawsuit against the fair this week.

Tracy and Michael Roberts, along with Mary Katherine Gordon and Michael Dover, filed the suit Monday.

Five-year-old Hannah Roberts was hospitalized at Levine Children’s Hospital for 10 days because of illness from the bacteria. She had blood transfusions and kidney dialysis during her stay, and has suffered emotional trauma from the hospitalization, her parents said in a previous interview.

According to the lawsuit, the girl has permanent kidney damage, and her parents “endured substantial emotional distress related to their daughter’s injuries.”

Isaac Dover, the 18-month-old son of Gordon and Dover, was also hospitalized from an E. coli infection contracted at the fair, according to the lawsuit.

Both children have since been released from the hospital, but both are still recovering.

'It should have been prevented'

The fair petting zoo was the source of the E. coli outbreak that sickened more than 100 and led to the death of a toddler, according to health officials. Consistent heavy rains during this year’s fair may have also played a role in spreading contamination by washing waste to nearby parking lots and walking areas, according to the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services.

At the outbreak’s peak, 106 people were battling E. coli symptoms – more than half of them 18 or younger, more than a dozen hospitalized and seven battling a disorder that causes kidney failure. Two-year-old Gage Lefevers from Gaston County died of complications from E. coli symptoms.

A state health investigation of the outbreak found no evidence fair officials broke any laws or guidelines.

In the lawsuit, Thomas Bumgardner, an attorney for the plaintiffs, charges that better practices should’ve been used to protect fair patrons.

In the suit he writes: “Among other things, the animal wastewater polluted the fair’s supply of sawdust, which was used to clean up spills and other hazards throughout fairgrounds. Despite its contamination, agents and/or employees of the defendant Cleveland County Fair Inc. spread the sawdust throughout the fairgrounds, including those areas outside of the petting zoo and even into areas intended for food consumption and sale.”

Livestock often carry bacteria such as E. coli in their digestive tracts. That bacterium can harm people and cause more serious reactions in children.

Bumgardner said the fair manufactured a perfect environment for such an outbreak.

“This was a foreseeable event. This should have been expected. It should have been prevented,” he said.

'Sorry is not enough'

Fair manager Calvin Hastings said Tuesday that he hadn’t been served with any lawsuit papers. When asked about the implications, he referred the media to his attorneys at Gardner Law Offices. Calls were not immediately returned Tuesday.

In the wake of the health department investigation, the fairgrounds closed to the public Oct. 22. Parts of the fairgrounds are expected to reopen after the first of the year.

Bumgardner said he doesn’t think fair workers intentionally did anything wrong. But their negligence injured people and took a life, he said.

“This is a case where sorry is not enough,” he said. “Sorry isn’t going to pay their outstanding medical expenses. Sorry isn’t going to repair their damaged kidneys.”

As of Tuesday afternoon no other cases against the Cleveland County Fair had been filed at courthouses in Gaston or Cleveland counties.

Each of the 106 people infected has a case, in Bumgardner’s opinion.

“This is one time where a child can stand equal with a corporation,” said Bumgardner. “They’re equals when it comes to administering justice in this case.”

Reach Diane Turbyfill at 704-869-1817.

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